Council nixes garbage rate hike again

After plenty of impassioned — and sometimes heated — debate during their Tuesday meeting, the Big Spring City Council once again voted against raising the garbage collection fees for local residents and businesses.

The same four council members who voted down the measure in September — Marcus Fernandez, Carmen Harbour, Glen Carrigan and Marvin Boyd — voted against the rate hike, while Mayor Larry McLellan was joined by Bobby McDonald and Raul Benavides is supporting the increase.

The measure would have increased monthly collection fees by $3 for residences and $5 for businesses. All money raised by the rate hike would have been earmarked for costs associated with opening a new cell at the city landfill.